24. Want to kiss again.

After Luo Yue finished speaking, she turned to go to the bathroom to take a shower, leaving Qin Zhaoyi standing alone in the living room.

There was a lingering scent of alcohol in the air, for some reason, it stirred a sense of restlessness in Qin Zhaoyi.

The sound of rushing water from the shower mixed with the wind outside, and the indoor temperature dropped. Qin Zhaoyi stood in place for a while and, as if in defiance, went outside to stand alone under the eaves.

Perhaps it was to cool down, as the wind felt colder than it did yesterday.

After Luo Yue came out of the bathroom and didn’t see Qin Zhaoyi, she didn’t think much of it. She went about her usual skincare routine and blow-dried her hair.

The windows in the room were not tightly closed, and the wind rushed in, so she got up to close them. That’s when she saw Qin Zhaoyi standing there all alone.

How should I put it?

She was genuinely good-looking.

Good-looking to the point that just a glance from the corner of her eye was hard to avert.

Especially when standing at the door, with one hand in her pocket, letting the desolate wind ruffle her hair. Her purple curls looked even more atmospheric under the dim yellowish light. She exuded an air of cool detachment, as if she were isolated from the rest of the world.

Even if it was just a side view, it could be described as breathtaking.

It’s unclear whether the sound of closing the window startled Qin Zhaoyi, or if it was the intense curiosity in Luo Yue’s gaze, but she felt something. She casually tossed her long hair and suddenly turned around.

They locked eyes.

Luo Yue regained her composure slightly and asked in a calm voice, “Not coming in?”

Qin Zhaoyi’s expression looked somewhat awkward, as if she was pondering how to respond.

After a while, Qin Zhaoyi forced out two words, her voice carrying a hint of an accent. Even though it was very subtle, you could still sense her irritation.

Luo Yue didn’t inquire further, only responding with a faint “Oh.”

She had restrained all the earlier playfulness, making it seem very plain.

As if Qin Zhaoyi’s question had crossed a boundary, causing them to naturally draw a line between them.

Luo Yue raised her hand to support the window. Her slender and fair wrist was illuminated by the dim yellow light, and you could even see the blue veins. She lowered her eyelids, and in her peripheral vision, she caught a glimpse of Qin Zhaoyi, who was still gazing at her, with curiosity and inquiry in her eyes.

Before Qin Zhaoyi could retract her gaze, Luo Yue pulled her hand back and closed the window directly.

The room was now completely sealed off from the sound of the wind and the waves.

Before Luo Yue could reflect and analyze everything that had happened tonight, her phone suddenly vibrated.

It was a message from Cheng Shijing: [Luo Yue, you’re very dangerous.]

Luo Yue frowned and replied casually: [What do you mean?]

Cheng Shijing: [You don’t understand?]

Luo Yue: “Don’t understand.”

A very straightforward response.

But Luo Yue had a faint guess in her heart because she had used the word “dangerous” when talking to someone tonight.

She had said to Qin Zhaoyi, “Do you know that your current behavior is very dangerous?”

Cheng Shijing noticed the undercurrents between them and used this to remind her.

A few seconds later, Cheng Shijing sent a voice message: “Tonight, I saw a car outside your house, not registered yet. It’s worth around a hundred thousand. I asked Wenge about it, and he said Yan Ci accompanied someone to buy it this afternoon. They swiped their card for a hundred thousand without batting an eye. It’s rare to see such a generous buyer around here. Wenge saw her ID, and she’s a local from Jiayi, from a family in an area where housing prices have skyrocketed to over ten thousand per square meter, and there are no small units available.”

Luo Yue read the entire message and stared at the screen as she absorbed the information.

She knew Cheng Shijing was talking about Qin Zhaoyi.

While drying her hair with a towel, she typed: [So what?]

Cheng Shijing: [… ]

Perhaps Cheng Shijing didn’t expect to bring up this topic. Even the usually clever Luo Yue hadn’t caught on yet.

Cheng Shijing continued: [As I suspected, she is not from our world.]

Luo Yue: [And then?]

Both of Luo Yue’s rhetorical questions seemed intentionally argumentative.

Cheng Shijing frowned on the other end of the phone: [Have you thought it through?]

Luo Yue’s hand hovered over the screen, and after a while, she typed a single word: [No.]

It was precisely because she hadn’t thought it through that she dared not say or do anything.

Cheng Shijing had a general understanding now.

Luo Yue was very interested in Qin Zhaoyi.

It was just a deeper level of interest than liking

For someone as calm as Luo Yue, she wouldn’t engage in such complicated and indecisive affairs unless her interest reached this level.

However, Cheng Shijing didn’t know what exactly made Qin Zhaoyi so intriguing to Luo Yue.

Cheng Shijing asked: [What attracts you to her?]

Luo Yue stared at the screen for a while and responded with a question: “Is a hundred thousand a lot?”

Cheng Shijing: [… Is it about the money now?]

Luo Yue: […Then how much is it?]

Cheng Shijing sent a picture to Luo Yue.

It displayed the housing prices in a residential area in Jiayi, ranging from 130,000 to 150,000 RMB per square meter, with the smallest unit being 140 square meters.

This meant that Qin Zhaoyi’s house was worth over ten million RMB.

Cheng Shijing continued to text: [We both have a hundred thousand, but we wouldn’t spend it without hesitation.]

Luo Yue agreed: “Yes.”

So, they really weren’t from the same world.

Cheng Shijing responded: “You don’t know if she’s just playing around.”

Luo Yue had been holding her breath since she started texting Cheng Shijing, and only now did she slowly exhale: “But I’m not playing with money.”

She was playing with people.

So, whether Qin Zhaoyi had money or not didn’t really matter.

Cheng Shijing was more focused on current affairs and academia, and luxury goods were not her usual concern. But because of Luo Xing, Luo Yue had done some research related to this area. So when Qin Zhaoyi arrived on Moon Island, she had already figured out that this woman was wealthy.

With a wardrobe and bag worth over a hundred thousand RMB and a seemingly plain suitcase that was a limited edition from 2021, priced at five figures, who would live this kind of life without a good reason?

But Luo Yue hadn’t noticed Qin Zhaoyi because of her wealth. It was purely her aura, especially her gaze. The look of disdain, the way she seemed to scorn everything, and the slight impatience in her eyes.

It gave off a certain… feeling.

Luo Yue couldn’t quite pinpoint if it was a sense of conquest or something else.

In any case, she really liked it; a glance at her gave her a tingling sensation in her heart.

It was like someone had taken a feather and gently scratched her heart, making it itch.

Cheng Shijing took a long time to respond, and Luo Yue guessed that he didn’t know how to advise her. Based on Cheng Shijing’s understanding of her, he knew that this inexplicable emotional entanglement would eventually bring her pain.

So, he wanted her to cut her losses in advance.

After a while, Cheng Shijing said, “But Luo Yue, you don’t play games.”

Luo Yue had always been serious in everything she did from childhood to adulthood. When she liked something, she went all in. Just as she wouldn’t leave a task unfinished, she wouldn’t engage in a half-hearted relationship.

Luo Yue replayed Cheng Shijing’s somewhat heavy voice message two or three times and was eventually amused by his tone. She sent a teasing voice message in response, “Why do I get the feeling you’re so sure that I’ll get hurt if I fall in love? Why can’t it be me who causes someone else pain?”

Cheng Shijing: [I only know you, so I only care about you.]

Other people weren’t within his consideration.

Luo Yue stared at that sentence, feeling a warmth in her heart. But after hesitating for two seconds, she sent another message: [In the future, you can also care about Xiao Qin.]

Cheng Shijing: [?]

Luo Yue: [It seems like she likes me.]

Cheng Shijing: [??]

Is there any connection between them?

And…

Cheng Shijing was puzzled: [Isn’t it obvious that she likes you?]

Luo Yue was taken aback: [Very obvious?]

Cheng Shijing: […]

A few seconds later, Cheng Shijing sent an exasperated voice message: “That girl’s eyes are practically glued to you. If I stand next to you, she’d probably want to kill me.”

Luo Yue listened to it once and smiled. After listening a few more times, she was laughing so hard she had to put her head down on the table, her back shaking with laughter.

Princess Qin couldn’t hide anything; her affection was plain to see. Anyone could see it, but she was the one who couldn’t.

Just as Luo Yue was laughing heartily due to Cheng Shijing’s voice message, the door was suddenly knocked on.

Luo Yue glanced at her phone, got up to open the door.

Her hair was still wet, draped over her shoulders, and somewhat disheveled because she hadn’t combed it after washing it. She looked a little messy.

Even when opening the door, she couldn’t contain her smile. Her expression was much more animated than when she closed the window earlier.

So the first thing Qin Zhaoyi said when she saw her was, “Why are you so happy?”

Luo Yue casually replied, “Just chatting with Shijing Ge.”

Qin Zhaoyi didn’t like her addressing Cheng Shijing as “Ge,” but she didn’t dare to bring it up. After all, she meant nothing to Luo Yue. And just now, her demeanor towards her was cold and distant, yet chatting with Cheng Shijing could make her so happy.

Qin Zhaoyi was even more displeased, and her expression was quite sour.

But Luo Yue found herself somewhat appreciating this side of Qin Zhaoyi.

Because… it was quite attractive.

Just like the first glance she had of her on the boat.

A breathtaking moment.

Actually, it wasn’t because this person was exceptionally good-looking. It was the unparalleled shock that this brief encounter had brought her.

Qin Zhaoyi maintained her sour expression for about five seconds and reluctantly handed something over, saying, “Here.”

Luo Yue asked, “What is it?”

“A gift,” Qin Zhaoyi replied.

She was clearly unhappy, and her voice sounded a bit stifled.

Luo Yue stared at the gift for a long time and didn’t reach out to take it.

Qin Zhaoyi held it awkwardly in the air.

“Don’t you want it?” Qin Zhaoyi couldn’t help but ask.

Luo Yue asked, “What’s inside?”

“See for yourself,” Qin Zhaoyi said, extending the gift bag closer.

“A pen?” Luo Yue took the bag, glanced at it, and said.

“Yes,” Qin Zhaoyi honestly admitted, “I didn’t know what you liked, so I asked Yan Ci.”

“I really like it,” Luo Yue said, “Thank you for the gift.”

“Happy birthday,” Qin Zhaoyi added.

Luo Yue was momentarily taken aback, then said, “Thank you.”

It was a very polite response, but she couldn’t think of a more suitable one.

For some reason, she suddenly felt awkward.

After a long silence, Luo Yue suddenly asked, “Do you want anything in return?”

Qin Zhaoyi was puzzled. “What do you mean?”

Luo Yue counted on her fingers and said, “Since you arrived, you’ve transferred 10,000 to me, you wished me a happy birthday last night, and today you gave me a gift. So… do you want anything in return for your birthday?”

“My birthday is still far away,” Qin Zhaoyi instinctively replied, but halfway through her sentence, she realized that this was an unspoken agreement.

Luo Yue was referring to the time after this point.

It meant that there could be continued contact in the future.

Qin Zhaoyi’s lips curled up momentarily, but she quickly suppressed it and acted coolly, “How do you plan to reciprocate?”

“Is it winter?” Luo Yue asked.

Qin Zhaoyi nodded, “Yes.”

“Then you won’t be on Moon Island at that time, will you?” Luo Yue asked.

Qin Zhaoyi hesitated, “Perhaps not.”

Luo Yue said, “When you leave Moon Island, you can give me an address, and I’ll send it to you.”

Qin Zhaoyi pursed her lips, “Aren’t you leaving Moon Island?”

Luo Yue lightly chuckled, “When I chose to come back, I didn’t think about leaving.”

Qin Zhaoyi contemplated for a while and then said, “If there are ties, I might still be on Moon Island at that time.”

“The future is too far,” Luo Yue shrugged, “Do you know the next line?”

“Seize the day,” Qin Zhaoyi raised an eyebrow.

Luo Yue nodded, then, taking Qin Zhaoyi by surprise, leaned forward, as if a peach blossom petal brushing across her face. Her lips briefly touched Qin Zhaoyi’s cheek before she retreated and stood in place.

With a smile, she looked at Qin Zhaoyi, “I don’t know where your ties will be in the future, so tonight, I’m giving you a return gift.”

Qin Zhaoyi froze.

Luo Yue raised her hand to close the door but was forcefully pushed back by Qin Zhaoyi when there was just a gap left.

Qin Zhaoyi leaned against the door of her room, grabbed her wrist, and called her name in a hoarse voice, “Luo Yue.”

“Yes?” Luo Yue looked at her calmly.

Qin Zhaoyi’s fingers subconsciously rubbed her wrist, inadvertently holding onto her pulse, feeling her strong heartbeat.
“Are you…” Qin Zhaoyi furrowed her brows, “Have you always been this frivolous?”

The word seemed to carry a negative connotation, but Qin Zhaoyi couldn’t think of a better word to describe it.

Luo Yue’s current behavior seemed frivolous, promiscuous, and… quite exhilarating, or so she felt.

For the first time, Qin Zhaoyi found herself at a loss for words.

When she wrote, she was occasionally accused of showing off her literary talent.

But Luo Yue didn’t seem to see it as derogatory; instead, she shook her head in response, “Not really.”

“Then you…” Qin Zhaoyi didn’t even finish her sentence before being interrupted by Luo Yue.

She replied confidently, “You said you wanted to kiss me again.”

Qin Zhaoyi: “…”